Foil container



' Oct. 30, 1951 Filed April 2, 1946 s. M. WEISBERG ET AL FOIL CONTAINER 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1 IN VEN TORS dA/W/EL l7. WE/SBEFFG HEN/W 5/4 BER/MANN bu 4 PD /7. PA (/4 SEN 22 12M; ATTORNEY Oct. 30, 1951 s. M. WEISBERG ET AL 2,573,524

FOIL CONTAINER Filed April 2, 1946 2 SHEETSSHEET 2 I i l I aw -1 y g;

b? if, 40' J 44 4 3 4 6 if 4 J6 f6 3 46 .4 0 I 1: f 43 l I l l r 30 'QJTH I ffl-+ 39% SAMUEL /7. E/VA) 5/LBEFFM/1/V/V DWARF H8404 SEN Patented Oct. 30, 1951 -FOIL CONTAINER Samuel -M. -Weisberg, Edward H. 'Paulsen, and Henry Silbermann, Baltimore, Md., assignors, by meme-assignments, to National Dairy Research Laboratories,,.lnc., :NewlYork, N. Y., a

corporation ,of Delaware Application April .2, 1946, SerialNo.65.8,999

32 Claims.

Thisinvention relates to improvements in containers, and it relates particularly'to improved containers formed of metallicfoil and to'the 'blanks from which such containers areformed.

'Thin flexible metal has been widely used in smallcollapsible and disposable containersfor pasty and liquid materials. However, 'metallic "foil has not been satisfactory'for larger dispos- .ablecontainers such-as car-tons for milk, other liquids, ice cream, and semi-liquids or pasty-materials, for the reason that it lacks the necessary .rigidity to withstand shock and maintain its shape under the weight :of'the liquid or other material therein.

The larger disposable containers :have been made heretofore of treated cardboard of sufficient thickness to support the Weight of the material therein. Such containers are not very attractive and are not entirely sanitary. The

waterproof coating usually consists of a wax mix- *ture which melts at sterilizing temperatures,

thereby rendering sterilization difficult. This coating is sulficiently-soft to permit dust-and dirt to adhere to it, even at-xordinary room temperature and lower.

A demand exists for more attractive and more sanitary containers such as would be provided by containers made from metal fdils, suchas aluminumfoil, aluminum: alloy foils and the'like if they could be made sufficiently-sturdy for'the purposes desired. Such containers could besteri- 'lized readily, would not presentsurfaces to which dust or dirt adheres strongly and, moreover,

would present bright attractive surfaces-to which advertizing and decorative material could be applied readily.

An object ofthe present invention, therefore,

is to providecontainers formed-of metallic foil which are sufiiciently strong-to :permit "their use ;for packaging milk, other dairy productsbeverages, semi-liquids and pasty materials, :as well as solids in commercially..suitable quantities.

Another object of the present invention is to provide metallic foil containers that are reinforced suitably to impart increased rigidity to. the containers.

A further object-of the present invention is to provide containers formed of metallic foil which are reinforced with .metal foil integral with the remainder of the container.

An additional object of the invention is to provide blanks from which reinforced metal foil containers can be formed.

Other objects of the invention will become apparent from the following description of typical forms of the invention selected-to illustrate the invention.

iInzaccordance with the present invention, we have providedcontainers which are made up wholly of a metallic foil, such as'for example, analuminum 'foil'or an aluminum alloy foil-0f such thinness that itnormally is incapable of withstanding shock and impact to which it might be-subjected under normalusage. The container :is formed preferably of a continuous blank having panel therein forming the sides and end closures-of the-container and having connecting webs between the side panels which may be folded over .inorder to form reinforcements at or .adjacent'tothe corners of the container. Such folded webs may take the form of overfolds of substantially flat nature 'or rolled overfolds forming beadsatthe corners of the containers.

The containers may be further strengthened by:providing similar overfolds in the side panels so that theside panels are reinforced lengthwise and rendered more rigid.

.It is also possible to provide the side panels withzsuitable decorative and reinforcing corrugations of X, diamond form or other form as maybe desired and the'containers may be supplied with suitable decorative or advertising material.

Containers embodying :the present invention are characterized' by substantially greater rigidity and resistance to impact and compression and-:areable to' withstandthe weight of a liquid or semi-liquid or pastymaterial therein without distortion.

flheacontainers being formed of metal, may be sterilized without danger of leakage and having :a smooth, .rpolished "surface, do not retain dust .01 dirt.

Floral-better understanding of the present invention, reference'may be hadto the accompanying drawingsinwhich:

.Figure l is a plan view of a typical form of blank for producing a container havingsquare ends and rectangular side walls;

.Figurez is'a perspective view of a container produced "from a :blank like that disclosed in Figure :1;

"Figure :3is an end viewof the container-dis- :closed in ;Figure.;2 :showingone of the :overfold beads partially-shaped :Figure 41s an enlarged sectional view-taken :through :one corner of .the container disclosed in Figure 3;

Figure :5 .is an end viewxofsa modifiedtype-of rcontainer having .:a flat overfold .atzits corners,

container blank providing webs between portions or sections of the side panels of the container to be formed into overfolds extending longitudinally of the panels and at the corners of the container;

Figure 8 is a perspective view of I one type of the container formed from a blank of the type disclosed in Figure 7;

Figure 9 is a perspective view of another type of container that can be formed from a blank like that disclosed in Figure 7 and Figure 10 is an end view of the container disclosed'in Figure 9.

The forms of containers and blanks'fromwhich such containers are produced are illustrated herein as having square ends and rectangular side .panels. It will be understood that the ends of the containers may be of triangular, rectangular, pentagonal or other polygonal shape and three or more side panels may be provided. Also, the containers :may be cylindrical, conical, frustoconical, pyramidal, or .frusto-pyramidal. The 'forms of the invention described hereinafter, therefore, should be considered as illustrative of the invention.

' The containers disclosed in Figures 2 to 6 inelusive may be produced from a sheet of metallic foil, such as aluminum or aluminum alloy foil generally of the shape illustrated in Figure 1. This blank includes a plurality. of rectangular side panels ID, II, I2 and I3 which form the sides of the completed container C, as illustrated in Fi ure 2. The panels II and I3 are provided with end flaps I4 and I5 and I6 and M, respectively, which are of the proper shape to form the ends of. the container 0 and, as illustrated, may be square.

The side panels Ill and I2 are provided, respectively, with the shorter flaps I8, I9, 2!], and 2! which are adapted to be folded to complete the ends of the container in the usual way.

Interposed between the side panels I0 and II, II and I2, and I2 and I3, respectively, are integral webs 22, 23, and 24, respectively, which when properly folded, form reinforcements for the container as will be described presently.

The panel II! is also provided with a laterally ,projecting tab which: includes a web 26' and a flap portion 21 which isadapted to be secured to the panel I3 with the web 26 between the panels IB and I3 to complete the container;

The flap 2? and the end fiaps I4 to 2I inclusive may be secured together in any suitable way, for example, by means of a suitable heat-setting adhesive and the edges of the flaps I4, I5, I6,

' and Il may be sealed to the adjacent ends of the panels III, II, I2, and [3' by means of flexible cellulose or foil tapes having adhesive thereon, by crimping or heading the edges, or in any of th e other known ways, for providing aliquidtight joint. If desired, additional overlapping flaps Ma, I41), and I40 and flaps lea, I51), and I50, may be provided for sealing the ends of the containers as shown in dotted lines in Figure '1.

One group of end flaps, fo example, the flaps '14 and I6 may be provided with apertures, not

.shown, which overlie each other and permit the 4 contents of the container to be emptied therefrom.

Containers formed of foil which are generally of the shape illustrated in Figure 2 have insufiicient strength when formed of aluminum or aluminum alloy foils. For example, containers formed of aluminum foil or a thickness of .0035 of an inch collapse easily under pressure and will not maintain their shape under ordinary conditions of handling.

In order to improve the strength and rigidity of the containers, the Webs 22, 23, 24, and 25 have been added to the blanks, these webs being suitably shaped and arranged to provide integral overfolds o reinforcements at the corners of the containers.

Referring now to Figures 2, 3, and 4, the overfolds may be formed by folding the webs 22, 23, 24, and 25 along their axial center lines, as illustrated in Figure 3, to provide a flap of double thickness projecting outwardly from the adjacent edges of the side panels II and I2. This folded web, for example web 23, may be rolled, as illustrated in Figure 4, to form a coiled bead at the corner of the container which extends the entire length of the corner and greatly stiifens. and reinforces the corner. K I

The webs may be treated in a different manner in order to reinforce the corners of the container and-the container as a whole, as illustrated in Figure 5. In this form of the container, the

webs 22a, 23a, 24a, and 25a may be folded along their center lines and then pressed flat against the sides Illa, Ila, I2a, and I311. of the container to form reinforcing overfolds extending longitudinally of the container adjacent to its corners.

Figure 6 illustrates a further modification of the overfold. Thus, the Webs 22b, 23b, 24b, and 25b of the container may be folded along spaced apartparallel lines extending lengthwise of the webs and the webs then are pressed into engage' ment with the panels on opposite sides of the webs to overlap these panels and form reinforc- .ing overfolds extending along the corners of the container.

Tests have shown that containers havin reinforced .corners, such as those described above, have two to three times the strength, under compression, of a container lacking such overfolds.

The strength of containers having the rolled overfolds at the corners, as shown in Figures 3 to 4, is the greatest, whereas the other types are further by providing overfolds extending lengthwise of the side panels of the container. A typical form of blank for producing such a container and. containers produced from such blanks are illustrated in Figures 7 to IOinclusive. As disclosed in Figure 7, the container made up of a plurality of side panel portions 30, (H, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, and 3'! each having suitable flaps on their ends for forming the ends of the container. Interposed between the various side panels 30 to 38 inclusive are integral webs 39, 40, M, 42, 43, 44, 45, and, which aregadaptedto be formed into 'overfold reinforcements. In preparing a container, such as the container 50 disclosed in Fig 'ure 8, the webs 39 to 46 may be folded in the manner described in connection with Figure of the drawings to bring the side panels 39 and 3!, the side panels 32 and 33, the side panels 34 and 39, and the side panels 35 and 38, respectively, into edge to edge engagement to form the four sides of the containers with overfolds at the corners and in the middle of the sides.

As shown in Figure 8, the folded webs 39 to as may be pressed flatly against the adjacent panels to form longitudinally extending reinforcements.

Alternatively, the webs 39 to 45 may be folded, as illustrated in Figure 6 of the drawings, to cause them to overlap the panel portions adjacent to each of the webs. This construction is disclosed more clearly in Figure 10 of the drawmg.

The overfolds may be further modified if desired to make them of bead or rod-like formation, as disclosed in Figures 3 and 4, to increase the strength of the container.

The same type of overfold reinforcement may be applied with equal facility to a cylindrical or other type of container by providing suitable connecting webs that may be folded or otherwise formed into reinforcements around the circumference of the container. Also, the side panels of the container can be stamped or otherwise provided with corrugations of any desired design or shape to strengthen the container and im prove its ornamental appearance.

It will be understood, therefore, that the invention is susceptible to considerable modification and should not be limited save by the appended claims.

We claim:

1. A container comprising a hollow body of polygonal cross-section having closed upper and lower ends and side panels of greater height than width, the edges of greater length being adjacent and angularly related to form corners extending from the lower end to the upper end, said body being formed of thin metallic foil having little resistance to impact and buckling stresses, said corners having a reinforcement of foil of substantially uniform dimensions integral with said side panels adjacent thereto and extending the full length of said corners, said reinforcement comprising a substantially cylindrical rolled bead having at least six layers in diametric cross section.

2. A container comprising a hollow body of polygonal cross-section having closed upper and lower ends and side panels converging toward each other to form corners extending from the lower end to the upper end, said body being formed of thin metallic foil having little resistance to impact and buckling stresses, said corners having a reinforcement of foil integral with said side panels adjacent thereto and extending the full length ofsaid corners, said reinforcement comprising a substantially cylindrical rolled bead having at least six layers of foil therein in diametric cross section.

SAMUEL M. WEISBERG. EDWARD H. PAULSEN. HENRY SILBERMANN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 163,088 Martyn May 11, 1875 623,964 Avery May 2, 1899 641,722 McCandless Jan. 23, 1900 1,410,622 Swift, Jr. Mar. 28, 1922 2,117,738 Metzger May 17, 1938 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 92,356 Germany June 1, 1897 

1. A CONTAINER COMPRISING A HOLLOW BODY OF POLYGONAL CROSS-SECTION HAVING CLOSED UPPER AND LOWER ENDS AND SIDE PANELS OF GREATER HEIGHT THAN WIDTH, THE EDGES OF GREATER LENGTH BEING ADJACENT AND ANGULARLY RELATED TO FORM CORNERS EXTENDING FROM THE LOWER END TO THE UPPER END, SAID BODY BEING FORMED OF THIN METALLIC FOIL HAVING LITTLE RESISTANCE TO IMPACT AND BUCKLING STRESSES, SAID CORNERS HAVING A REINFORCEMENT OF FOIL OF SUBSTANTIALLY UNIFORM DIMENSIONS INTEGRAL WITH SAID SIDE PANELS ADJACENT THERETO AND EXTENDING THE FULL LENGTH OF SAID CORNERS, SAID REINFORCEMENT COMPRISING A SUBSTANTIALLY CYLINDRICAL ROLLED BEAD HAVING AT LEAST SIX LAYERS IN DIAMETRIC CROSS SECTION. 